Fight for Sight confirms effective methods to save the sight of patients with trachoma

 

Media Contact: Lizzie Webster
Telephone: 0207 264 3904
Email address: lizzie@fightforsight.org.uk

 

Fight for Sight, the UK’s leading charity dedicated to funding pioneering research to prevent sight loss and treat eye disease, has announced new findings which could help transform the way patients with trachoma  receive medical treatment.

Trachoma is one of the world’s leading causes of blindness  and affects almost eight million people globally , occurring where people live in overcrowded conditions with limited access to water and health care. The disease is triggered by infection, which leads to repeated bouts of conjunctivitis and scarring of the eyelids, causing them to roll in and the eyelashes to scratch the cornea (trichiasis), which can lead to blindness.

The new research, which was carried out in Ethiopia, has found that, whilst surgery is the preferred option for the treatment of minor trichiasis , epilation (plucking eyelashes) is a suitable approach when surgery is not available, or declined by the patient. The study was led by Dr Matthew Burton from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and funded by grants from the Band Aid Foundation (through Fight for Sight) and The Wellcome Trust.

A separate study carried out by the same team of researchers has also revealed that using absorbable sutures is as effective as silk sutures in surgery for major trichiasis , but that absorbable sutures have the added advantage of eliminating the need for patients to return to a clinic soon after their operation to have stitches removed.

Dr Dolores Conroy, Director of Research at Fight for Sight, said: “These new developments are an important step forward in our fight against trachoma. This infectious disease can be agonising - patients describe the pain like having thorns scraping their eyes when they blink.

“In many regions, the current surgical provision for trachoma is inadequate, and in remote, rural areas, it can be difficult for patients who are in later life, or living in poverty, to attend a clinic. In many cases, patients themselves refuse surgery.

“The results of our latest research into the management of this blinding disease are crucial in identifying ways to provide support to millions of people living with trachoma who currently have no access to medical treatment, as well as providing training for health care workers involved in surgical services.”

To view the papers ‘Surgery Versus Epilation for the Treatment of Minor Trichiasisin Ethiopia: A Randomised Controlled Noninferiority Trial’ and ‘Absorbable Versus Silk Sutures for Surgical Treatment of Trachomatous Trichiasis in Ethiopia: A Randomised Controlled Trial’ in full, please visit the Public Library of Science Medicine website www.plosmedicine.org.

Fight for Sight funds pioneering research to prevent sight loss and treat eye disease at leading universities and hospitals throughout the UK. To find out more about the charity’s current research programme, please visit www.fightforsight.org.uk or contact 0207 624 9000.

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Notes to Editors:
For more information, please contact Lizzie Webster, Media and Communications Officer at Fight for Sight on 0207 264 3904 or at liize@fightforsight.org.uk

About Fight for Sight
1. Fight for Sight is the leading UK charity dedicated to funding pioneering research to prevent sight loss and treat eye disease.
2. Fight for Sight is funding research at leading universities and hospitals throughout the UK. Major achievements to date include:
• saving the sight of thousands of premature babies through understanding and controlling levels of oxygen delivery
• restoring sight by establishing the UK Corneal Transplant Service enabling over 48,000 corneal transplants to take place
• providing the funding for the research leading to the world’s first clinical trial for choroideremia
• bringing hope to children with inherited eye disease by helping to fund the team responsible for the world’s first gene therapy clinical trial
• identifying new genes responsible for keratoconus and Nance-Horan syndrome
3. Fight for Sight’s current research programme is focusing on preventing and treating age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma and cataract. We are also funding research into the causes of childhood blindness and a large number of rare eye diseases.

About the Wellcome Trust
The Wellcome Trust is a global charitable foundation dedicated to achieving extraordinary improvements in human and animal health. It supports the brightest minds in biomedical research and the medical humanities. The Trust’s breadth of support includes public engagement, education and the application of research to improve health. It is independent of both political and commercial interests. www.wellcome.ac.uk